Faith In The City | A Reformed Evangelical Anglican Podcast

The post Good News For A Worn Out World | FITC60 appeared first on Grace Nation with Dr. Jonathan G. Smith.

Does God really like us? According to Genesis 1, the answer is yes! In this new series, Jonathan explores God's Passion for People and asks, why? The post Surprise! God Really Likes us | FITC59 appeared first on Grace Nation with Dr. Jonathan G. Smith.

The number one problem when sharing our faith in Jesus with friends is the words we use. Most well intended presentations of the Gospel are laden in “churchy” words no one understands. The net effect of it all, we sound weird. In fact, we probably feel weird when we say it. That’s why it is vital for Christians to learn how to speak “human.” The post Speak Human – Sharing the Gospel With Your Friends | FITC58 appeared first on Grace Nation with Dr. Jonathan G. Smith.

Have you ever thought of God’s reputation being “on the line?” I never have. But surprisingly the Bible actually talks a great deal about this. When Moses pleaded with God not to wipe out Israel after they had totally blown it by worshipping a false god, Moses appealed to God’s reputation (Genesis 32:12). The post How To Pray For The Salvation of Your Friends | FITC57 appeared first on Grace Nation with Dr. Jonathan G. Smith.

Does fear keep you from sharing your faith with your friends? If so, you are not alone. When it comes to sharing faith, the statistics for average church goes isn’t very good. So what is the problem? The post Preaching the Gospel To Yourself | FITC56 appeared first on Grace Nation with Dr. Jonathan G. Smith.

Most challenges we face each day occur in our minds. Life certainly presents its fair share of developments requiring us to think about “what to do.” But if our mind is a mess, then how we react will be affected to the degree of our mental health. That’s why Paul’s statement in Romans 12 is so important. The post Renewing Your Mind: The Power of Thought | FITC 55 appeared first on Grace Nation with Dr. Jonathan G. Smith.

Why do Christians believe that God unconditionally loves them? In this message, Pastor Jonathan continues his series on Chapter 8 Christians by looking at the heart of Paul’s letter Romans 8:1–2. The post We Are Chapter 8 Christians – Romans 7:21-8:11 | FITC51 appeared first on Grace Nation with Dr. Jonathan G. Smith.

Are Christians free to do anything choose? The answer is “of course not.” So how does God respond when we fail to do the things we should? The post HOW TO BREAK THE SPIRITUAL ANXIETY THAT HOLDS US BACK | FITC50 appeared first on Grace Nation with Dr. Jonathan G. Smith.

What is the purpose of the church? So often answers to this question are based on doctrinal or traditional bias rather than on the words of Jesus. But there is no ambiguity as to the answer. Jesus is clear. The church is to “go” and “make” disciples. That is the mission. Nothing more and nothing less. Surprisingly, however, the Gospels do not use the same words to describe the purpose. So is it possible to harmonize all four Gospels to discover a deeper agenda for the church? The post FITC49 – What Is The Purpose of The Church? appeared first on Grace Nation with Dr. Jonathan G. Smith.

Last week Orlando remembered the victims of the Pulse Nightclub shooting where 50 young men and women lost their lives in the name of hate. Thus, Orlando joined a sad and unfortunately growing list of cities who have experienced atrocities where a single individual took it upon them to lash out against our society. That […] The post FITC48 | Why Human Dignity Matters appeared first on Grace Nation with Dr. Jonathan G. Smith.

Bitterness is poison. It can eat away at person’s soul, robbing them of joy and leeching our spiritual life. You can always tell when a person is bitter because it oozes out like an open wound. If we’re honest with ourselves, bitterness is slightly intoxicating, even euphoric. It feels good, making us feel empowered and in control of […] The post FITC47 | Finding God In The Midst of Bitterness – The Gospel of Naomi appeared first on Grace Nation with Dr. Jonathan G. Smith.

Have you ever felt confused about tithing or giving money to the church? Well, if you are, you are not alone. Depending on how much time you spend in the church, you have probably encountered a wide variety of opinions on the issue. In the book God and Money, the author’s quote a survey conducted […] The post FITC46 | What Does The Bible Teach About Money? appeared first on Grace Nation with Dr. Jonathan G. Smith.

Have you felt betrayed by someone? I have, and the feelings that go along with it are awful. Betrayal is the worst experience in human relationships. When a spouse cheats on their husband or wife, the pain can almost have a numbing effect. When a business colleague steals from their partner, it can sabotage the […] The post FITC45 | Betrayed, Showing Kindness To Judas – John 13:1-20 appeared first on Grace Nation with Dr. Jonathan G. Smith.

How can you have a relationship with a God who you can’t see, touch, or hear? That’s an important question every Christian must answer but not always able to do. Fortunately for us human beings, the Bible points to Jesus as modeling a perfect relationship with God. That’s good news. The bad news, however, what […] The post FITC44 | What does a relationship with God actually look like? Matthew 5:13-20 appeared first on Grace Nation with Dr. Jonathan G. Smith.

Have you ever wondered if living the Christian Life is worth it? I think if we are honest with ourselves, sometimes it feels that the Christian life is not always comfortable. At times, our faith may even feel like it is working against us. I’ve seen this in my life where my Christian values have […] The post FITC 43 | Does the Christian Life Work? Matthew 5:2-12 appeared first on Grace Nation with Dr. Jonathan G. Smith.

Every great book is full of twists and turns, plots and subplots. That’s true for the Bible as well. But in today’s society, most people have not read the Bible. They may know some things about the Bible but could not tell you what it is really about. So in this message, Pastor Jonathan begins […] The post FITC42 | What The Bible Says About People, God, and His Kingdom appeared first on Grace Nation with Dr. Jonathan G. Smith.

What does it mean to have a relationship with Jesus? Evangelical Christians use the word “relationship” to describe the connection between God and man. But the word relationship is not found in the Bible. Instead, we find the word covenant is used to show how God relates to us. So in this message today, we […] The post FITC41 | How God Relates To Us Through His Covenant appeared first on Grace Nation with Dr. Jonathan G. Smith.

What is God’s liberating power? Over the years, as I have studied scripture, I’ve noticed the common theme of God’s liberating people from captivity. You can’t read very far into the gospels without being confronted with Jesus liberating people from all kinds of things including illness, disease, demonic oppression, and religious oppression. So how do […] The post FITC40 | The Missional God – Understanding God’s Liberating Power appeared first on Grace Nation with Dr. Jonathan G. Smith.

What does it mean to repent? Is it for those on the outside of the church or inside as well? In this episode, Pastor Jonathan looks at Jesus initial message, “Repent for the Kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Contained in this little verse are two very powerful ideas that are unpacked in this message: […] The post FITC39 | Realign to God’s Mission Matthew 4:17 appeared first on Grace Nation with Dr. Jonathan G. Smith.

If you had to remember just one idea of Christianity, would you include the doctrine of Total Depravity? In this episode, I’m sharing with you the radical, liberating idea of the “law of sin and death.” Contrary to it being a morbid or depressing teaching. Total Depravity liberates us from the tendency of living legalistic […] The post FITC38 – Remember the Basics of the Christian Faith, Total Depravity and the Gospel appeared first on Grace Nation with Dr. Jonathan G. Smith.

Is your relationship with God on the right track? Is it possible to know all the right things about God and still end up getting it all wrong?  Answering that question seems rather easy enough. However,  Jesus makes it clear that having right theology does not mean that you are in a good relationship with […] The post FITC37 | Is Your Relationship With God On the Right Track? appeared first on Grace Nation with Dr. Jonathan G. Smith.

What is the real secret behind living each and every day with spiritual integrity? Answering this question isn’t for everybody. Because when you ask that question, you must make an active decision — the decision to walk daily with Jesus. In this final sermon on Living the Integrated Life, we conclude this series by examining […] The post FITC36 | How To Live Everyday With Spiritual Integrity – James 5:12-20 appeared first on Grace Nation with Dr. Jonathan G. Smith.

Have you ever noticed advertisements that begin with “the number one secret to changing your prayer life?” Frankly, I haven’t. And that’s too bad because prayer is one of the most important disciplines in the life of faith. We all want to know the secret formula to success and the life of our dreams. But […] The post FITC35 | The Number One Secret to Changing Your Prayer Life – James 4:1-10 appeared first on Grace Nation with Dr. Jonathan G. Smith.

Do you underestimate the power of your words? Do words really hurt? In this message, Dr. Jonathan G. Smith continues his series, The Integrated Life, by looking closely at the issue of our speech. James teaches that contained within our speech is the power to create life or destroy it. Knowing the difference between the […] The post FITC34 | The Awful Power of the Words We Say – James 3:1-12 appeared first on Grace Nation with Dr. Jonathan G. Smith.

What kind of faith saves you from God’s judgment? Protestant Christianity has staked its reputation on grace alone through faith alone.  But does saving faith mean that all we need to do is merely believe?  Or is there a connection between saving faith and the things we do? In this episode, we continue to look […] The post FITC33 | Justification, Works, and Genuine Saving Faith – James 2:14-26 appeared first on Grace Nation with Dr. Jonathan G. Smith.

Discrimination is just plain ugly.  No matter the reason why it might have happened, when a person feels discriminated against, it can be a very painful experience. So is the church any better at avoiding this social problem? Unfortunately, for the church, prejudice against certain groups can happen even in conservative, evangelical churches.  So what is […] The post FITC32 | Discrimination, the Gospel, and the Church – James 2:1-12 appeared first on Grace Nation with Dr. Jonathan G. Smith.

This political season has resulted in lots of anger. But for the Christian, anger is not always an option for faithful followers of Jesus Christ. Pastor Jonathan continues his sermon in the Letter of James by looking at the theme of anger and God’s righteousness. James epistle does not allow us to get angry at anything […] The post FITC31 | How Anger Destroys Our Gospel Witness – James 1:19-27 appeared first on Grace Nation with Dr. Jonathan G. Smith.